Bikes & Big Ideas

Mountain bike gearboxes have had a small but vocal set of proponents for over a decade but have yet to see widespread adoption. That might be changing, at least in World Cup DH, and Atherton Racing is one of several teams debuting, or at least testing, a gearbox bike for this season.So we sat down with Rob Gow, the Head of Design at Atherton Bikes, to talk about the new A.200.G and what spurred its development in the first place; what it took to adapt the A.200.M to accept a gearbox; what Atherton’s design process looks like in general; the pros and cons of gearboxes — both for DH racing and more broadly — and a whole lot more.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredTOPICS & TIMES:Introducing Rob (3:00)The A.200.G concept & why go gearbox? (6:17)The development timeline & process (13:58)Comparing the A.200.M and A.200.G (28:45)Gearing & setting up a gearbox vs. a conventional drivetrain (36:51)The future of gearboxes (42:47)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicCRAFTEDGEAR:30Blister PodcastOff The Couch

Finding period-correct tires has become next to impossible or prohibitively expensive when restoring vintage mountain bikes. Bike industry veteran and vintage bike enthusiast, Wakeman Massie, recognized this void and founded House of Looptail to fill it. Wakeman has painstakingly recreated some of the most iconic tires in mountain bike and BMX history.In today’s Bikes and Big Ideas conversation, Wakeman talks about some of the other well-known products he designed before getting into vintage tires, like the Travel Agent, Tooth Fairy, 1x1 Blowerdrive, Surly Singleator, and the legendary Surly 1x1 frame. Wakeman and Simon discuss the challenges of recreating tires when the drawings and molds no longer exist, why the new tires are better than the old ones, why vintage mountain bikes deserve to be ridden and not thrown in the landfill, and a whole lot more. RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ MembershipThis Week’s Gear GiveawayHouse of LooptailTOPICS & TIMES:Starting out in Bike Shops (2:31)Industrial Design Degree and Working for QBP (4:11)Earning Trust with the Travel Agent (8:52)Designing the Surly 1x1 (11:18)Starting House of Looptail (23:53)The Snake Belly Tire (30:53)Working with Panaracer (34:40)The New Tires are Better (37:56)The Ritchey Megabite Z-Max (45:04)How to Remake a Tire with No Drawings or Molds (48:53)What's Next (52:24)What Wakeman is Riding (55:33)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicOff The CouchGEAR:30Blister PodcastCRAFTED

David Golay and Zack Henderson sat down to chat about a ton of the new gear we’re currently testing, including bikes across the travel spectrum, some suspension products, and a bunch more. Plus we dive into the merits of active chain devices and talk about our early impressions of the Rimpact Chain Damper and how it stacks up against an Ochain.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredTOPICS & TIMES:Pivot Trailcat LT (1:44)Transition Sentinel (7:31)Santa Cruz Bronson (15:23)Ochain vs Rimpact Chain Damper (23:46)Ibis Oso 1.1 (28:46)RockShox Zeb Charger 3.1 (37:09)RockShox Vivid Coil (44:18)Outlier Void & Pendulum Pedals (56:27)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicCRAFTEDGEAR:30Blister PodcastOff The Couch

Another month has gone by, giving Mike and Simon plenty to talk about in the latest edition of Reviewing the News. In the last episode, they were super excited about the upcoming Red Bull Hardline in Tasmania, and today they get into the results, the insane speeds throughout the course, Asa Vermette’s rise to elite-level racing, and Jackson Goldstone’s redemption. It wouldn’t be a Reviewing the News episode without some bike industry news, so the lads discuss the recently imposed tariffs, the return of Nukeproof, and what’s happening with Rocky Mountain, plus a fun conversation about some new cycling startups. All of this and more in our February edition of Reviewing the News.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ MembershipBLISTER+ Real World TestimonialsBlister LabsThis Week’s Gear GiveawayBlister Mountain Bike Buyer’s GuideTOPICS & TIMES:Mike’s Looking Fit (1:29)Hardline Tasmania (4:27)Gates 100k purse predictions for ‘25 (12:31)Atherton Racing vs Aon Racing (20:00)Nukeproof Rising From the Ashes (25:45)Tariffs Again (34:01)Rocky Mountain Bikes Update (40:45)Arkansas Cycling Startup Accelerator (42:42)What We’re Reading and Watching (1:02:16)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTSBlister CinematicOff The CouchGEAR:30Blister PodcastCRAFTED

George Brannigan announced his retirement from World Cup Downhill at the end of the 2024 season — but he’s not done racing, and just put up a very strong result at Red Bull Hardline Tasmania, finishing 11th despite a minor crash.So we sat down with George to talk about his decision to step away from World Cups to race other events; his move to Transition that went alongside it; his thoughts on the state of World Cup racing; and a whole lot more.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredTOPICS & TIMES:Retiring from World Cup racing (2:32)One last season & gaining a new perspective (7:57)Finding a team for 2025 (11:51)The state of World Cup DH (16:41)Looking back on George’s 15-year World Cup career (21:21)Hardline Tasmania 2025 (25:18)Hardline Wales & evolution of the track (29:36)George’s 2025 plans and goals (41:52)Filming (45:34)The Motorhead edit (53:33)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicCRAFTEDGEAR:30Blister PodcastOff The Couch

Camille Balanche had an outstanding 2022 race season, winning the World Cup Overall title, and carried that momentum into 2023 before a horrifying crash in Andorra ended her season. We sat down with Cami to talk about her recovery and continued injury struggles in 2024; her move to Yeti and their re-emergence in World Cup Downhill; the state of the sport and the myriad rule changes for this season; how much longer she hopes to keep racing; and a whole lot more.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredJoin Us! Blister Summit 2025TOPICS & TIMES:Cami’s move to Yeti (2:30)Learning about the 2025 rule changes (8:02)Qualifying in 2025 (13:22)Team status & restructuring (15:53)Pay in women’s DH (20:06)Re-establishing Yeti in World Cup DH (22:47)Cami’s monster crash in Andorra & returning to form (27:40)Cami’s 2024 season & injury struggles (29:59)The conversations around head injuries & how to better care for them (37:22)Cami’s goals for 2025 (42:26)The 2025 race calendar (44:06)How much longer will Cami race? (45:59)

Trump’s tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico are high on Mike and Simon’s lists of topics to talk about —  and it looks like there will be some uncertain times ahead for the bike industry. Speaking of Mexico, we’re hearing some good things are going on down there in regard to trail building, and since Mike is spending the winter in Baja, it’s the perfect opportunity to have the conversation about Mexico as a mountain biking destination. Red Bull Hardline is just a few days away, so be sure to tune in quickly for a preview. The start list is insanely stacked and Mike and Simon can’t wait to see who has the best early-season form, plus they throw out some predictions. All of this and a whole lot more in our first Reviewing the News episode of 2025.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ MembershipBlister LabsThis Week’s Gear GiveawayBlister Mountain Bike Buyer’s GuideJoin Us! Blister Summit 2025TOPICS & TIMES:Mexico as a Mountain Bike Destination (1:37)Walton Money in Mexico (14:32)Trump’s tariffs impact on the Bike Industry (30:01)De Minimis Loophole Closed (35:06)Good Bye to Richey’s Rainbow Stripes (38:04)RedBull Hardline Tasmania Preview (45:09)What We’re Reading & Watching (52:48)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicOff The CouchGEAR:30Blister PodcastCRAFTED

The Kona Process 153 and Transition Sentinel V3 have about the same suspension travel, not super different geometry, and were both developed by companies based in the same part of the world. They also ride very, very differently. So we sat down to talk about both of them and why they differ, some other new components we’re testing, including the Vorsprung Telum and OneUp Clip Pedals, and a bunch more.RELATED LINKS:BLISTER+ Get Yourself CoveredJoin Us! Blister Summit 2025TOPICS & TIMES:Transition Sentinel V3 (2:07)Kona Process 153 (9:14)Vorsprung Telum (20:59)OneUp Clip Pedals (29:26)Enve M6 Wheels (40:37)CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Blister CinematicCRAFTEDGEAR:30Blister PodcastOff The Couch